The Family That Preys Together, Stays Together
by 1983Sarah
Summary: The BAU is sent to track down a family of killers, only they don't know it. They up the body count fast and the team needs to develop a profile that explains all the inconsistencies with the murders. Takes place in season 3 or 4 as a missing episode.
1. Chapter 1 Guess Who's Coming to Dinner

The Family That Preys Together, Stays Together

By 1983Sarah

"Insanity in individuals is something rare - but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule." Friedrich Nietzsche.

The young man with a large bag hurried into the ramshackle building from his parked black Prius. As he reached the door to the hotel he sighed and turned around, holding out his free arm and pressing the remote entry button. The vehicle made a small beeping sound as the doors locked. Neon lights from other stores, gas stations, and hotels in the area reflected off the wet surface of the car.

_Why can't one of the other, better, hotels have a vacancy? This one is totally not to my taste. I bet they only have the basic cable package too, _the man thought before finally escaping the rain and entering the "Wayside Inn." He ran his hand through his wet dark brown hair and turned his gaze to the main desk. There was a man in his forties manning it, talking with a boy in his teens. They both turned to look at their new guest.

"Welcome," the man said, "I'm John Bender and this is my son, Junior. Need a room for the night?"

"Gee, you think?" the man asked arrogantly. "This is a new Armani suit and the shoes are Prada! I've just spent the last hour trying to find a hotel that isn't full due to the symposium that is taking place in town. Which I AM attending, by the way."

John Bender chuckled, "Yes sir, I can see this isn't the highbrow type of place you're used to. But it's warm, dry, and comfortable. I know I and my family will do our best to make your short stay comfortable. Could I have your name please?"

"Henry McKenzie," he said as he pulled out a credit card to pay for the room, "and what are the rates here? Not that it matters, since I haven't a choice in the matter." Henry sniffed and rubbed at his nose.

"Betcha don't have a problem with the finances anyway. High class man like yourself. But it's $59.99 a night." John ran the credit card and quickly approved it, sliding the signature slip and a key over the countertop to Henry. There was now a hungry gleem in his eyes that Henry missed as he proceeded to sign his name and pocket the key.

Just then a striking young woman walked into the room. "Can I take your bags, sir?" she asked, batting her eyes at Henry. He grinned at her, a tall, willowy blond with full pink lips.

"Sure, thank you very much Miss…?" Henry couldn't take his eyes off of her.

"Oh, Kate's just fine. Kate Bender." She smiled sweetly and then provocatively jutted her hip out at the newcomer as she went for the bag. Henry just took it all in. _Maybe this won't be so bad after all. Could get lucky,_ he thought, following Kate up the stairs and to the left. Kate placed his bag on the floor of a simple room. The paint on the walls was white and the brown carpeting showed signs of wear but was spotless. Kate turned into Henry, brushing her body up next to his, "You're more than welcome to join the family for dinner; and dessert. It's in fifteen minutes. Freshen up and come down the stairs and go around the corner to the dining room."

With that Kate sashayed out of the room, leaving Henry flushed and at a loss for words. He went into the bathroom and shed his wet clothes, quickly stepping into the shower. It took only five minutes and he was out getting dressed. Within ten minutes he deemed himself 'presentable' for dinner and walked down the stairs to charm the pants off the old inn keeper's daughter. In the dining room were the father, son, and daughter, plus Mr. Bender's wife.

"I know you've meet Junior and Kate. This is my wife, Marli." Marli then rose and offered Henry a chair.

"You're the guest. A guest of honor tonight." She grinned toothily at him. The chair was next to a curtained partition instead of a regular wall, which unnerved Henry slightly, although he didn't know why. He took the proffered chair, however, with a smile on his face. "Thank you ma'am. I appreciate all your help."

Dinner went on silently, except for Kate's interjections into the meal. Henry appreciated her words and found her to be engaging.

"Well, that was very delicious, darling'," John said to his wife, "But I think I'll pass on dessert."

"Me too, Ma. I'm so full, I can't eat another bit," Junior directed at his mother, and then shot a furtive glance at Kate, who nodded just ever so slightly. Quickly, the three Bender family members left the room, leaving Henry with Kate. She slid closer to him and reached for his hand, tracing the lines in his hand with her delicate fingers. Henry leaned in closer to her, and then noticed that her eyes had shifted and she was looking behind him. The curtained partition rustled. Henry turned just in time to see a sledge hammer come crashing down on his head. His body slumped over in the chair he had been sitting at.

"About time, Pa. I was getting sick of entertaining that selfish son of a bitch." Kate helped the rest of her family move the body out of the chair and over to a trap door in the floor. Marli opened it and together they shoved the body inside, letting it drop to the bottom. It landed with a sickening thud and the Benders filed down the rickety stairs. Junior ripped off the shoes from Henry's body. Kate searched his pockets, grabbing keys and a wallet while John and Marli began extracting the suit from the body.


	2. Chapter 2 Wheels Up

************************************Two Days Later***********************************

It was morning at the BAU headquarters in Quantico, Virginia. Several of the agents in Aaron Hotchner's team were gathered for a meeting to determine which of the cases they had been offered to investigate they should look into. JJ came in just as Hotch was greeting the majority of the team. Everyone looked at her with expectancy but warmth at their friend and coworkers presence.

"Hey Hotch; I think I got something for you. It just came in and appears to be an escalating situation." JJ held out a white sheet of paper to the team leader then smiled and nodded a quick greeting to the rest of the team members who were present. She knew they already had too many cases that could use their attention, but this was their job and their life. It was her job to find the cases that could benefit most from the presence of the BAU.

"Yes, thank you JJ," Hotch said absent-mindedly, his brow furrowed over as he pursued the document she'd just handed him. JJ stood and waited patiently to get his attention again while Garcia walked in, her heels clicking confidently on the titled floor, her blond hair fashioned into a colorful half ponytail with blue streaks.

"Hey sugar, how are you doing? No, don't tell me, I probably don't want to know. You come bearing something flat, white, and scary, don't you? " Garcia asked JJ.

JJ smiled a bit at Garcia's wordplay but it didn't carry to her eyes because she knew the words held a great deal of truth. "Yes, it's an abduction or murder case. Four missing individuals, potential victims, in Labette, Kansas. Victims are all male, all in their mid to late twenties. Families claim they were going to stay at various hotels in the area while passing through for business. Most of the families seem to suspect foul play. No word yet on all the hotel names."

"Why do the families think they were killed?" Rossi questioned as he leaned forward on the table, hands folded in front of him. "Couldn't this just be a case of overzealous parents?"

"Unlikely, Rossi," Hotch said, having finally finished reading the paperwork. "Some of these men are approaching thirty with wives and children. All have great jobs, were expected in the region, haven't checked in with any loved ones, and have stable relationships on record…" Hotch's voice trailed off.

"Statistically, as of 2008, 16% of all missing persons are 21 or older. Younger persons are the generally the target, usually due to family disagreements or, in the worst cases, pedophiles. Roughly 48% of those in the 21 or older category are considered 'endangered' or 'missing under circumstances indicating that they may be in physical danger.' A common misconception is that a person must be absent for 72 hours before being legally classed as missing, but this is rarely the case; in instances where there is evidence of violence or of an unusual absence, it is of paramount importance to begin the investigation promptly. I say we take the case. These people have been missing for anywhere from two days to two weeks. Being males it is highly likely that they were either victim to an accident or predator, human or otherwise." Reid fired off at a rapid pace, calling from his eideticmemory facts and figures from the FBI's _NCIC Missing Person and Unidentified Person Statistics_ report.

"So, the families are right, it's most likely foul play. Especially when you consider the localization of the occurrences and the rapidness with which they occur," Morgan stated, slapping Reid on the back, "You did good, kid. Reid smiled with gratitude at the fellow agent's words.

"Agreed. So far no bodies have shown up, but the fact that it only took two weeks for four people to disappear in the same area…at the very least we should check it out." Prentiss said, surveying all the faces at the small conference table. She twisted her chair to have a better view of Hotch, for the team leader had begun to speak again.

"So, are we all in agreement, this is a case we want to take?" Hotch directed the question at the entire table.

Nods came from all the BAU members.

"Alright, wheels up in an hour. Garcia, I need you to stay here and run all the statistics. Help us narrow this down to something less than a whole town in Kansas." Hotch stood up as he spoke and grabbed his file folders from the table. "Everyone else, we're heading to Kansas." Chairs jumbled around the table as the agents all left to do some quick packing and board the BAU's jet. As the agents filed out the door Morgan met Garcia, who was on her way to her analyst computers. "Take care, baby girl. Sorry you can't go this time."

She smiled at Morgan's words, a saucy grin on her face. "Yes, it is a shame…maybe next time I can go and then we can join the mile-high club together."

"Lookin' forward to it sweetness, leave the light on for me."

"What am I, Motel 6? I'll have you know I'm not cheap and easy." Garcia retorted playfully.

"Never thought so, love. Just know that you're the one who can keep this place together."

"Damn right, now, go on, get your pack and catch your flight, or people will talk."

"Don't they always, baby girl?" Morgan grinned broadly and waved goodbye as he headed out to grab his travel bag and board the jet along with the other agents.


	3. Chapter 3 Local Yocals

**A/N: OK, I know you're out there readers. C'mon! Please, pretty please review and tell me what you think of the story? It's my first Criminal Minds fic, and I want to know if you all like it or not. There's this great "review" button at the bottom of the page too, you know? So nice and handy...anyway, here is the next chapter for my CM fic. This is more character driven then intense with murder scenes. Hope you enjoy, and if you have any ideas about where you'd like this to go or a scene that you'd like to see, I'll see if I can work it in. **

**A/N2: I SHOULD have said this BEFORE the first chapter, but oh well, hindsight is always 20/20. This story is based on the true story of the "Bloody Benders" that lived in Kansas in the 1870s. Facts are woven in throughout the story. Like, the name of the hotel, York really was the brother of a murder victim, and the victim you saw in the first chapter was really a victim too. Names are used when at all possible. The method of murder is also as accurate as I can get it. So, I hope this puts the story in a new and creepy light! Thank you in advance for reading and, if possilbe, reviewing. **

**~1983Sarah**

******************************************************One Hour Later*************************************************

The plane was in the air and gliding along seamlessly. From the ground any citizens gazing up at the sky would see only a white jet and its jet stream. They would never know, never suspect, that it housed several well trained FBI agents looking over the disturbing case that was forming in Labette, Kansas. Each agent had a manila folder in their hands and they bounced ideas, theories, and profile similarities and differences based on past experiences.

"If this is a case of someone taking advantage of strangers in town looking for hotels, directions, a ride…it's going to be hard to pin him or her down." Prentiss said.

"Correct, it's hard to even place a gender reference down at this time because so little is known about what happened to these people and what the unsub is looking for in his victims," Reid said as he pushed by his dark blond locks away from his face.

"I think we know all we're going to get from these files. Once we get on the ground we can talk with the local authorities. They will be our best source of information on the occurrences," Rossi leaned back in his seat and watched his coworkers settle in for the plane ride. Hotch shot him an appreciative smile; the team didn't need to be burnt out or too set into a theory before even reaching the town.

****************************************************Five Hours Later**************************************************

The jet touched down on the tarmac smoothly and without incident. Within minutes the entire BAU team was outside of the jet and standing in front of two local police cars; there were also taxis behind those vehicles. Hotch stepped forward to greet the sheriff and his deputy.

"SSA Hotchner, this is SSA Rossi…Prentiss…Morgan…Jareau…and Dr. Reid," Hotch indicated with his head each agent in turn.

"I'm LeRoy Dick, and this is my deputy, Tom Osborn" The sheriff extended his hand in greeting. "Boy, are we sure glad that you folks agreed to take our case. We're a large area, but still rural, and it's hard to get people to use the hotels and other venues if there are people disappearing left and right. Still, this case might have a bit of a sad breakthrough, if you believe Ed York." Sheriff Dick craned his neck and looked in back. Hotch and the other agents followed his gaze to see a young, wiry man watching the whole scene intently.

"Who is this Ed York?" Prentiss asked the sheriff. She was instantly suspicious of the man who refused to back down and followed their every movement.

"Oh, you don't have to worry about him, ma'am. He's a victim here, or rather, his brother is. Dr. William York frequented the area and always called once he got here. Two weeks ago Will was supposed to call and he never did. Ed is convinced that something bad happened. He came to me last week and alerted me to the severity of the situation. Then, yesterday, he remembered that Dr. York liked to frequent a couple of local, more 'rustic' hotels. One called the 'Wayside Inn' and the other 'Myers Mountain Lodge'. We have yet to go look at these locations; decided it'd be best if you all took a look-see first." Deputy Osborn took a few deep breaths, shook his head, and sighed. His eyes were bright with anticipation; he was ready to take on whatever or whoever was behind these disappearances.

Hotch cleared his throat and raised his voice, saying, "Rossi and Prentiss, I'd like you two to check out the Mountain Lodge and the Wayside Inn. Morgan, Reid and I will begin to work on presenting a profile to the local officers. JJ, you know the drill. Get the word out, but reassure the locals. We don't need anyone panicking."

Their instructions in place, Rossi and Prentiss left their luggage in the parking lot and headed to one of the taxis.

"To the Myers Mountain Lodge, please," Rossi's gruff voice rang out over the slamming car door. The cab quickly sped off.

JJ, Reid, and Morgan ambled over to the other taxi. The driver got out and loaded the entire team's luggage into the truck. He grunted and grumbled, dragging bag after bag across the pavement and then dropping them unceremoniously with a thunk. Finally, his task accomplished, he grabbed the door handle and slide in between the wheel.

"We'd like to head to the sheriff's department please," Reid spoke in a soft but firm tone.

Hotch went into the police cruiser, his brow furrowed in concentration, eyes sharp and every watchful. Every time his people went out on a case he worried about them and where it might lead. He shook his head imperceptibly, "Hmm…I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"Just that it's a damn shame it came to this, having you all come out here and investigate something that might not turn in tah anything substantial. But, I have a bad feeling about this, it isn't gonna end well for those poor missing men," the sheriff said, rambling on some more about the case and their lack of leads and evidence.

The taxi and the police car pulled into the sheriff's department only moments apart. Hotch and his three team members grabbed their gear from the back of the taxi. They would call another one later on, right now they needed to determine what the connection was between the victims and the unsub or unsubs and get the locals a working profile.

Reid's sharp voice filled the room, the words broken up by a huffing sound as he wrangled some bags into submission, "Do you have a place where we can work?"

The deputy, Tom, smiled warmly, "Right this way, fellas. We got all the boxes related to the case set up in here." He stepped heavily onto his right foot and put his shoulder into the solid oak door.

The BAU team filed in with all their bags, two short. They settled in to begin the more in depth profiling process.


End file.
